While the numbers attending may have been mildly below projections,
the mood and the technical aspects of the AAPG Annual Meeting in
Dallas exceeded expectations.
Buoyed
by the highest crude and natural gas prices in a decade, the over
5,100 attendees from 77 countries were drawn to the technical sessions,
where the program committee put together a heavyweight curriculum.
"The excellent
technical program is what made this meeting memorable for attendees,"
said Terry O'Hare, the meeting general chairman who also headed
an impressive fund-raising effort to help underwrite many meeting
activities.
"A lot
of money was raised through sponsorship," he said. Also, in his
view the meeting succeeded because it was "well organized and had
a good theme."
That theme,
"Embrace the Future, Celebrate the Past," was highlighted throughout
the technical sessions, which were described by one of the volunteer
judges as "the most impressive set of papers we've ever had."
In addition
to the papers and posters, attendees had plenty to see, hear and
learn about on the exhibits floor, where displays from 164 companies
and 60 non-profits featured the latest in industry technology and
services.
International
Pavilion
Also included
in the exhibits hall was the International Pavilion — a busy place,
with 37 countries exhibiting, among them Vietnam and Afghanistan,
both making their first appearance at an AAPG annual meeting.
International
registrants totaled 810, or about 18 percent of the attendees.
The meeting
also featured seven field trips and 10 short courses — and, in
another of the meeting's special touches, attendees were given a
first-class athletic bag to tote around session notes.
As usual,
the meeting officially started with the opening ceremony, a standing-room-only
event where AAPG President Steve Sonnenberg delivered a keynote
address that focused on ethics and professionalism.
Sonnenberg
noted in his address that education, such as that provided at an
annual meeting, is a vital component of competence, a cornerstone
of being a professional.
Sonnenberg
also noted the other cornerstone of integrity — you "must have
a code that you can live by," he said — as a base on which the
pyramid of professionalism layers to a capstone of enthusiasm.
Larry
Funkhouser
That enthusiasm
was very much in evidence in Dallas, including the loud and long
ovation given to Larry Funkhouser as he received the Sidney Powers
Medal, AAPG's highest honor.
Funkhouser
was one of 37 people who were honored for their contributions to
the profession, science and the Association.